Classic Daycruiser
06-03-2007, 09:07 PM
16 netted for DUI at Lake Pleasant
Audrie Garrison and Elias C. Arnold
The Arizona Republic
Jun. 3, 2007 09:08 PM
A sobriety checkpoint for boaters set up by law enforcement officials at Lake Pleasant on Sunday yielded 16 arrests for operating under the influence.
The operation was one of seven scheduled for this summer. Overall, officials have 20 special projects to increase safety on the lakes planned for the summer, said Kevin Bergersen, boating law administrator for the Arizona Game and Fish Department. The other 13 projects are saturation patrols, where six to eight boats will be out at one time checking for dangerous activity.
"It was very, very productive," Bergersen said Sunday after the operation. He estimated officials made contact with up to 300 boats during the special enforcement.
Bergersen said OUIs are a much bigger issue when it comes to boating than motor vehicles, because people often don't limit themselves when they are boating the same way they would on the road.
"People who would never, ever drink and drive a motor vehicle wouldn't think twice about coming to the lake and driving impaired," he said. "They just don't equate it to the same level."
There are also no open-container laws for boats in the state of Arizona, while there are for motor vehicles.
Over Memorial Day weekend, officers operated a motor vehicle checkpoint for cars leaving Lake Pleasant. Bergersen said that out of about 1,000 stopped cars, they arrested between eight and 15 drivers for DUI. He said that in a typical boating checkpoint, officers will often arrest 15 drivers out of about 300 boats.
The difference in drivers' mindsets is the difference in the nature of the activities, Bergersen said. Driving a motor vehicle is a day-to-day function, while boating is a recreational activity.
"People don't equate fun to adhering to the law to the slightest degree," he said.
Forty percent of all boating fatalities involve alcohol, Bergersen said. Last year was Arizona's deadliest year in terms of boating accidents, with 14 fatalities. This year, there have been two so far.
Arizona has six of the 15 most dangerous waterways in the country, including Lake Pleasant, Bergersen said. That criteria is based on numbers of fatalities and injuries.
Besides increasing safety on Arizona's lakes, one of the main purposes of the checkpoints is increasing awareness, Bergeson said.
"There's still people out there that think nothing of drinking and boating, and that's a problem," he said.
http://www.azcentral.com/news/articles/0603DUI0603-ON.html
Audrie Garrison and Elias C. Arnold
The Arizona Republic
Jun. 3, 2007 09:08 PM
A sobriety checkpoint for boaters set up by law enforcement officials at Lake Pleasant on Sunday yielded 16 arrests for operating under the influence.
The operation was one of seven scheduled for this summer. Overall, officials have 20 special projects to increase safety on the lakes planned for the summer, said Kevin Bergersen, boating law administrator for the Arizona Game and Fish Department. The other 13 projects are saturation patrols, where six to eight boats will be out at one time checking for dangerous activity.
"It was very, very productive," Bergersen said Sunday after the operation. He estimated officials made contact with up to 300 boats during the special enforcement.
Bergersen said OUIs are a much bigger issue when it comes to boating than motor vehicles, because people often don't limit themselves when they are boating the same way they would on the road.
"People who would never, ever drink and drive a motor vehicle wouldn't think twice about coming to the lake and driving impaired," he said. "They just don't equate it to the same level."
There are also no open-container laws for boats in the state of Arizona, while there are for motor vehicles.
Over Memorial Day weekend, officers operated a motor vehicle checkpoint for cars leaving Lake Pleasant. Bergersen said that out of about 1,000 stopped cars, they arrested between eight and 15 drivers for DUI. He said that in a typical boating checkpoint, officers will often arrest 15 drivers out of about 300 boats.
The difference in drivers' mindsets is the difference in the nature of the activities, Bergersen said. Driving a motor vehicle is a day-to-day function, while boating is a recreational activity.
"People don't equate fun to adhering to the law to the slightest degree," he said.
Forty percent of all boating fatalities involve alcohol, Bergersen said. Last year was Arizona's deadliest year in terms of boating accidents, with 14 fatalities. This year, there have been two so far.
Arizona has six of the 15 most dangerous waterways in the country, including Lake Pleasant, Bergersen said. That criteria is based on numbers of fatalities and injuries.
Besides increasing safety on Arizona's lakes, one of the main purposes of the checkpoints is increasing awareness, Bergeson said.
"There's still people out there that think nothing of drinking and boating, and that's a problem," he said.
http://www.azcentral.com/news/articles/0603DUI0603-ON.html